The Attic, Revisited
by Zenelia
Summary: Nina and Fabian have a déjà vu moment in the attic. Things go pretty much the same, only with one small change. A change for the better. Fabina fluff!
1. A Peck on the Cheek

**A/N:** I can't resist Fabina. It's so perfect. I wonder if tomorrow's episode will have anything to do with Valentine's Day. . . Speaking of which, I grace thee this fluffy piece in celebratory fashion of the upcoming romance holiday! I know it's probably a cliche, since this is a major Fabina moment, but I added my own twist to it. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** As much as I would love to own HoA, I don't. I'm not British/Dutch/Swedish/Whatever-Nationality-the-original-creators-were, and I'm not that good at coming up with mysteries. I would also like to own Brad Kavanagh, but that's classified as human ownership and is illegal. So I don't own him either. What a shame. . .

* * *

They were sitting in the attic, shuffling through various boxes. Nina had decided that it'd be a good way to look for new clues—just go through the items, and tell the other if they found anything that looked particularly creepy. Not only was it a good way to find clues, but it was helping them understand the background of the House, and its Egyptian roots.

So far, it was just her and Fabian. Though Amber had tagged along on quite a few of their attic expeditions, the blonde had decided that the attic was thoroughly scary, and not worth the trip every time.

"I don't think there's anything of note in this box," Fabian announced, pushing aside the box he had been digging in. "Just a bunch of old books on Egyptian mythology. Nothing we haven't seen before at this point."

Nina sighed. "I wish we could find something. Anything. I feel like we're stuck right now."

Fabian stood and dropped back down, this time beside Nina. "We practically are. But don't worry, I'm sure we'll find something soon," he said, ever the optimist. "Maybe another visit to Sarah will help?"

She shook her head. "I don't know if that's such a good idea. She's a good source and all, but last time we went to see her, she seemed so confused and upset. I don't know if what she says will match up anymore."

Fabian lent his head back, looking around. "Maybe not, then."

They lapsed into a silence, Nina going back to the journal-type object she was examining, and Fabian just glancing around, taking a break from riffling through the boxes. It was a few minutes more before they heard anything and then it was—

"That sounded like the door!" Nina barely whispered.

Fabian nodded as footsteps followed. He quickly stood up, grabbing Nina as he did. "Come on, we can hide behind the panel!"

Nina quickly pulled on the chain around her neck, and shoved the Eye against the wall. The panel opened, and Nina and Fabian rushed inside.

Taking a deep breath, Fabian listened at the door as Nina slid down the wall into a sitting position. Whoever was on the other side of the panel, they weren't talking. But Fabian knew in his gut that it was Victor. Who else would be coming up to the attic at night?

"Are you okay?" He asked in just a breath of a whisper, leaning down to sit beside Nina. She looked cold, and scared.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. That was just a close call," she replied in the same tone he had used.

Fabian took off his jacket, and draped it across her, much like he had done once before. "You're telling me. I don't even want to imagine what Victor would've done had he caught us."

Nina smiled at him, pulling his jacket closer to her. The gesture, the situation, and most of all the smell of the jacket all worked together to remind her of the last time they had sat together in the space behind the panel. And also what Amber had thought about what went on when Nina snuck off with Fabian. . .

"Yeah, me either. We'd be toast, for sure," she whispered.

It was a while later that they heard the creak of the door shutting behind Victor. By this time, Nina had grown tired, and had leant her head against Fabian's shoulder. She was half asleep as he prodded at her, hoping she wasn't all the way gone.

"Nina. . . Nina. . . Nina! We can leave now," he said, smiling as she slowly regained full awareness of where they were.

"Oh. Oh, right, right." She got the warm feeling inside as Fabian helped her up. _He's always such a gentleman._

Nina was still a bit shaky on her feet from the sleep, so Fabian didn't let go of her. If he was honest with himself, though, he was just looking for an excuse not to let go of her arm and waist.

They made it out of the attic, and crept into the hall way as quietly as possible, still wary of Victor. Nina had pulled Fabian's jacket all the way on, and looked quite comfortable in it. Fabian pulled the attic door to slowly, so it wouldn't creak too loudly.

"That was close," Nina reiterated. She was smiling, and every now and again a small giggle would escape her lips.

"Yeah, no kidding," Fabian said. He walked her to her door, constantly reminded of last time. _Maybe I'll change just one thing. . ._

"Well, I'd better slip back into bed before Amber notices something. And you'll want to get back downstairs in case Victor's still prowling." Nina made to take his jacket off.

"No! I mean, no, you keep it." Fabian had stopped her from peeling the garment off by putting his hands on hers. "It's alright—I won't need it for tonight." He didn't move his hands, even though he was rather worried that they were going to start sweating due to nerves.

"Aw. Thanks." Nina liked the warmth of Fabian's hands on hers. She had thought at first that things would be weird—Fabian himself was rather awkward at times, and the fact that she'd never had a boyfriend before wouldn't help things—but it seemed oddly natural. Just like their friendship, only they were doing more couple-y things.

They stood there awkwardly for a minute. Then Nina started laughing again.

Fabian looked around and shushed her, a smile on his own face. "What's so funny?"

"This," Nina said, only quieting enough not to get caught by Victor.

That's where she lost Fabian. The smile fell, and a near-frown took its place. "What's so funny about this?"

Nina picked up on the mood change, and she calmed. "Well, just that it's so strange, yet . . . Oh, I don't know. It's not strange. If that even makes sense." Nina hated it when she started rambling like that, and it happened more often than she would like, but it was a nervous habit of hers. She didn't want to ruin this chance at something more with Fabian, like she had before.

Thankfully, the smile returned. "Oh, so it's strange but it's not. Yes, Nina, that makes total sense." He couldn't resist teasing her.

"Oh you know what I mean!" She laughed. Then she heard something down the hall—it could easily be one of the girls in the washroom, but it also could be Victor.

"I think that's our cue to go to bed," Fabian said.

"Yeah, I think so too." She looked down, noticing that their hands were still entwined. Looking up, she said, "Well, good night."

Fabian leaned a bit closer. "Good night, Nina." Then, gathering his courage, he planted a kiss on her cheek. It wasn't much, but it was enough.

He pulled back, taking his hands with him, and made to turn down the hall.

Nina had stood dumbstruck, but she didn't want Fabian to leave without her saying something. "Fabian!"

He turned. "Yes?"

"Uhm. Thanks," she said somewhat lamely. "For the jacket, and . . . well, yeah. And be careful of Victor!"

Fabian chuckled, thinking Nina was rather cute when she was rambling. "No problem. And I will be. Good night." He walked back to his room—all the while looking back in case Victor was prowling—and finally shut his door behind him. With one last smile and a contented sigh, he crawled into bed.

Nina had watched him leave. She smiled, and reached up to touch the place where Fabian had kissed her. _I'll have to talk to him tomorrow about this, _she thought. _Just so I know where we stand. . . And so I have an excuse to bring it up!_

Nina turned to her room, and cautiously entered. There, she was faced with a suspicious Amber.

"Where have you been all night? Surely the attic couldn't have taken that long. Ah! I know! You and Fabian had a secret date! Didn't you? You did! You're even wearing his jacket! Oh, that's so cute!"

Letting her room-mate gush over her love life, Nina took off her shoes and prepared for bed. She hung his jacket on the bedpost by her head, so it'd be near all night. In the morning, she'd talk to him, and hopefully have her first boyfriend soon.

* * *

**A/N:** Sorry if this is kind of awkward in parts, but Fabina is awkward at times. So I think it's justified. I'd love to hear from you readers and know what you think. I'm also thinking of doing a multi-chap piece, with a new clue and whatnot. I'm going to let the show progress a bit more before I do that, though. Reviews make me happy. :]

-Zenelia*Sky


	2. The Morning After

**A/N: **Soooo. I hadn't planned on this chapter coming into existence. You see, this story was supposed to be a one-shot. But someone had suggested this, and it started writing itself. Sorry it took so long - blame me getting caught up in the show. (Speaking of which - the finale! Squeal!) But here it is! Enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** Nope, not mine. I keep spending my 11:11 wishes on it, but the wishing fairy doesn't like me very much. Maybe one of these days. . .

* * *

Nina stood in her room, holding Fabian's jacket in her hands. She was debating whether or not to give it back to him now, or to just go on down to breakfast and talk with him first. _If I do it now, everyone will see. But if I don't, then it might be awkward when I try to bring it up. Oh decisions!_

"What are you doing? Oh, I get it! You're holding his jacket because it makes you happy! Oh, Nina, that's so sweet!" Amber squealed as she walked through the door. She dropped the bag of her toiletries on her bed, and plopped down on Nina's.

Nina sighed and rolled her eyes. Amber had been gushing about this for a good deal of the night, and it seemed that it was coming back full force this morning. Nina had long ago stopped trying to convince the blonde that not much had happened, and that she still needed to talk to Fabian about it.

"Nina? Are you listening?" Amber finally broke through to her again.

"What? Oh, yeah, of course I am! What'd you ask?" Nina internally kicked herself for letting her thoughts run away.

"I asked if you're ready to go down to breakfast. Ooooh, are you going to bring Fabian his jacket back? That's so cute!"

"Yeah, I'm ready. And . . . No, I don't think I'm going to give it back to him just yet. I don't want to cause a stir. Hey, Amber! You can't tell anyone about this yet. Alright?" Nina set Fabian's jacket down, and turned to her roommate.

"Nina. Puh-lease," Amber rolled her eyes. "It's obviously a secret, and I know not to tell. Honestly, why would I? It's a _secret date_! It's so romantic. And I am _not_ one to mess with romance."

Nina smiled. Amber may be a bit of an air-head and have her own way of viewing things, but she was reliable when it comes to it. "Thanks. I'll let you know when you can have the free reign." Nina laughed and went down to breakfast.

"What's 'free reign'?" Amber asked herself, still standing in her room. "Really, Nina, use language I can understand." She followed her friend.

* * *

Fabian looked up as he heard someone come down the stairs. He knew it was either Nina or Amber, as Patricia and Mara had already made their way to breakfast. He'd been alternating between eagerly waiting Nina's appearance, and dreading it. He was scared things were going to be awkward between them since he had kissed her on the cheek. But at the same time, he wanted her to come down so he could see if she treated him any different . . .

"Good morning!" Nina greeted everyone in her customary way. Mara waved good naturedly; Jerome, Alfie, and Mick took a slight break from shuffling food in their faces to look up; and Patricia sneered and said, "No need to be so perky. It's only a school day—nothing special."

Nina sat down in her spot next to Fabian. "She seems to be in as good of a mood as ever."

Fabian smiled. "You know how she gets."

"Yeah." Nina sat there for a minute, then began picking her food. Once that was done, things lapsed back into the awkward silence.

"Okay, yeah, I can't do this. Fabian, we need to talk," Nina said, taking charge. Fabian had been the only person who was nice to her when she first came to England, and he had been so sweet to her. She wasn't going to let one kiss-on-the-cheek turn things awkward between them and ruin it all.

Fabian smiled, somewhat ruefully. "I agree." He made to stand up, but Mick stopped him.

"Hey, mate, before you go, can I ask you something?"

He looked at Nina, who just shrugged. "Yeah, alright."

"Great!" Mick walked into the hall, heading towards his room. Fabian cast one last glance at Nina, and followed.

"What'd you want to ask me?" Fabian asked as soon as they were in their room again.

"You're smart. And you have relative common sense, don't you?" Mick seemed like he couldn't stand still. It made Fabian a tad nervous.

"Yeah, I suppose. Where're you going with this?"

"Can you—Could you help me with my new phone? My dad sent it to me the other day, and I haven't been able to do anything with it!"

Mick looked sincerely upset, so Fabian thought it best not to give in to that urge to laugh. He had been worried it was something serious! _Well, since Mick's not part of Sibuna, it wouldn't have been that dire. . . _he amended.

"Sure, Mick. I can help." He checked the time on his watch. "It'll have to wait until break, though. If we don't leave now, we're going to be late for first class." Fabian was hoping to talk with Nina, but he could still do that later, he supposed.

The two teens walked out of their shared room, and down the hall where everyone was leaving.

"Fabian! I grabbed your bag and blazer off your chair—I thought you'd need them for class," Nina said as Fabian came into sight. She lifted his rather heavy bag—he not only had his school things, but apparently a few other personal books in there as well, which made it weigh more—and held it out to him. His blazer was looped around the strap.

"Oh, thanks, Nina!" Fabian smiled. He grabbed the bag, swinging it onto his shoulder.

They left together, walking with each other as always.

* * *

Nina, who wasn't sure if they were going to pick up their conversation where they left off, decided to say, "So, what'd Mick want?" by way of tentatively reopening the subject.

"Oh, just some help on something. He asked me not to say because he's embarrassed by it, but it's nothing major," Fabian replied, watching the ground as he walked.

"Alright. . . ," Nina let her voice trail off. Things had got awkward again. She twiddled with first her bag, then the hem of her blazer.

"Nina, I still think we need to talk. I hate that we got interrupted." Fabian looked over at her. He also sort of felt like a over-analytical nerd, the way he kept bringing it up.

"Yeah, we do," Nina said. She took a deep breath. "So, last night. . . You—"

"—Kissed you. On the cheek. Yeah," Fabian interrupted. "Look, Nina. I . . . I really like you. Okay? And. . . I want us to be—" It was Fabian's turn to be interrupted.

"—More than friends?" Nina gave a little laugh. "Me too. Me too by a lot."

Fabian was sure that his smile was going to hurt his cheeks, and that his face was the same color as a tomato. "Really?"

By now they had stopped, standing in front of the school. Nina looked into Fabian's eyes, seemingly searching for something.

Whatever she was looking for, she appeared to have found it, because she broke out into a smile of her own, and said, "Really."

Fabian gasped, then—acting on impulse—reached out and pulled Nina into an enthusiastic hug. He twirled her around a few times, before setting her down again. "Does that mean that if I asked you to be my girlfriend, you'd say yes?"

Nina decided to play a bit coy. "Oh, I don't know about that. Why don't you ask me and see?"

Fabian was confused for a moment, then went ahead (after all, all the signs had been pointing to _yes_) and asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?"

Nina leaned closer to him and pecked him on the lips in a chaste—but sweet—kiss. "Yes."

Fabian's smile was blinding again. "Ye-e-s!" Fabian yelled, swirling her around again, and kissing her properly on the mouth.

The moment was perfect—until the bell rang and throngs of students filed about the hallways in the school, where they were perfectly visible. Both Fabian and Nina looked up as Jerome started wolf-whistling at them, and Mick started a whooping chant of "Fabian, mate, you did it!" Amber was squealing, and Patricia was looking on with a fond disgust in her eye, wondering if this would make her late to History.

The new couple looked at each other and sighed, resigning themselves to the taunts, and trudged up to the school, hand in hand.

* * *

**A/N:** How'd I do? I, personally, like it. It wasn't supposed to be this long, but Mick threw a wrench into my plans when he interrupted them on his own accord. Now that this is out of the way - the finale! Ohemgee I about died. I'm almost certain I squeaked and kicked the air like a little kid more in that episode than I had in all. So many Fabina moments! And they got together, finally! Oh, gosh. It was great. Now I can't wait for the new season. (Because I looked on a website and it said that this was the season finale.) But I am glad they're re-showing all the episodes again starting Tuesday! Enough of my ramblings - if you want to talk HoA, shoot me a message. Reviews make me happy! :]

-Zenelia*Sky


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